Border security, citizenship for military, DREAMers favored in poll

Maria Teresa Kumar, CEO of Voto Latino, says the immigration system is broken.

A Rasmussen poll released Friday shows that while border security is still a higher priority than a pathway to citizenship, a growing number of voters support military service as a way for undocumented immigrants to attain citizenship.

Also, citizenship for DREAMers — those who were brought to the United States as children — who have succeeded in school or served in the military was overwhelmingly supported by poll respondents.

With an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the country and immigration reform a controversial topic across the country, approaches to reform draw people’s attention.

Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates reducing immigration, said he sees the issue of citizenship through the military as a diversionary tactic “from the broader issue of whether we should be legalizing immigrants and under what circumstances.”

Krikorian also said while legalization, if not citizenship, will be inevitable, legalization without first reforming enforcement would not serve as a long-term solution.

“Legalizing long-term, nonviolent, illegal immigrants is clearly something we’re going to end up doing to some degree, just as a practical matter,” Krikorian said. “Sometimes you gotta accept reality. The problem is that unless the enforcement systems that require this from happening again in the future are in place before any legalization takes place, it won’t happen.”

Margie McHugh, a director at the Migration Policy Institute, testified before a House subcommittee last June that based off of current numbers, only about 31,000 were likely to take the military option, due to the educational and English language proficiencies acting as a barrier for some potential applicants.

The poll showed 80 percent of likely voters believe children who come here illegally and serve in the military or obtain a college degree should be allowed a path to citizenship.

Maria Teresa Kumar, president and CEO of VotoLatino and MSNBC commentator, said she thinks a pathway to citizenship has already been defined but hopes people willbe given the chance for the military option.

“I think it’s what is currently being addressed in the Senate proposal,” Kumar said. “ Basically, making sure that folks are paying their taxes, learning – if they can- to learn English and making sure that they’re good citizens all around. I think that’s really the criteria we need and if folks want to join the military, that’s terrific.”

Kumar also said legalization and enforcement need to be addressed at the same time.

“What Washington needs to do is pay attention to the common sense that the rest of Americans are showing,” Kumar said. “One, the immigration system is broken and two, it needs to be fixed, and we need to do it with a combination. It can’t be one or the other. It has to be a combination of strict border security and at the same time addressing the 11 million people that are already here. That’s just common sense.”